Sherwood Appreciated
Dear Bay Weekly:
Your writing on Betty Sherwood [Appreciation Feb. 3-9] was beautiful. I didn’t know this lady but I felt her presence, interestingly, in my contact with her son, Eric at Archbishop Spalding High School years ago. Every now and then, I would run into Eric following his graduation and he would talk about his mom and dad. Like his mom, he “sparkles” too.
When I heard of this tragic accident, without identification of the victim, I felt a pull. When I learned that it was Mrs. Sherwood, I was deeply saddened, feeling that I had known her although I had only felt her spirit through her son. She must have indeed been a warm candle in the wind, and I know she will be terribly missed by her family and those that had the privilege of knowing her.
—Meg Mitchell, Annapolis
Thanks from Rebecca Ruark’s Captain
Dear Bay Weekly:
On the second day of oyster-dredging season, Nov. 2, 1999, my skipjack, the Rebecca T. Ruark, sank in a freak storm on the Choptank River.
I am thankful to local watermen Robbie, Jason and C.R. Wilson, Billy Lednum and Brucie Lowery who rescued me and my crew in 12-foot seas and 60-mph gusts. They saved our lives.
After an arduous attempt by commercial vessels to raise my boat, three days later Rebecca still lay on her starboard side laden with mud, ballast and 80 bushels of oysters. Talbot County Councilman Buddy Harrison IV petitioned to Secretary Richard C. Mike Lewin of the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development and James H. McLean of the Governor’s Office of Business Advocacy. Within hours, the Maryland Department of Transportation and Port Authority disembarked a 150-foot barge and crane from Martin G. Imbach Inc.’s marine salvage company and successfully righted Rebecca, saving the oldest skipjack on the Chesapeake.
Many thanks also to the Tilghman Island Inn, who sponsored two fundraisers, the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, for allowing me to use their dock while under repair this winter and the many individuals who have contributed to the restoration fund set up at the Easton Bank & Trust.
—Wade H. Murphy Jr., Tilghman Island
Editor’s note: Read a related story in this week’s Dock of the Bay.
Gilchrist Family Seeks Relatives
Dear Bay Weekly:
Please help us to publicize the upcoming Gilchrist Family Reunion. The Gilchrist Family Reunion 2000 will be held July 28-30 in Fayetteville, North Carolina, at the Holiday Inn, I-95 & Exit 49. Learn more from the Gilchrist Reunion Committee: 910/630-7706 • [email protected].
—Descendants of Jim & Daniel Gilchrist • www.ncneighbors.com
Copyright 2000
Bay Weekly
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